Chapter 28:

Jian Shi and Shen Qingzhou had made plans to meet at a very atmospheric Western restaurant. It was evening, and the restaurant was dimly lit, filled with couples coming and going. From the wide glass windows, one could see couples seated by the windows, dining lovingly. As soon as one walked in, one could hear softly playing romantic and stylish English songs. In short, everything was perfect—the ambiance, the environment, and the food—except for one thing: the people weren’t.

Lin Qiao lowered her head to adjust her clothes, pretending to casually glance around, and immediately spotted Shen Qingzhou.

Actually, finding him wasn’t hard. He was tall and always stood out in a crowd. Even when seated, his distinguished posture made him easy to recognize. And indeed, many people in the restaurant were looking his way, watching him and the woman sitting across from him, Jian Shi, with envious expressions. It almost made Lin Qiao want to rush over and drag him away.

Lin Qiao huffed in irritation and walked directly toward his table. Since his back was to the entrance, she wasn’t worried about him noticing her. Boldly, she sat directly behind him, quietly ordered her meal from the waiter, and then remained silent.

The most dangerous place was also the safest. Jian Shi was Fang Mingjun’s secretary, had always followed him around the world, and had never met Lin Qiao. There was no need for Lin Qiao to worry about being recognized. Besides, no one would bother to remember the face of a passerby, so she was quite safe sitting here.

Interestingly, since Lin Qiao had sat down, she hadn’t heard Shen Qingzhou say a single word. Although there was some distance between her seat and his, she could still hear Jian Shi’s soft and low voice. The entire conversation was one-sided, with Jian Shi doing all the talking while Shen Qingzhou occasionally responded with a simple “Hmm” or “Oh,” never saying more than a word.

This realization brought Lin Qiao a little comfort, although only slightly. She still felt uneasy, gripping her wine glass tightly, biting her lip as she waited for them to get to the point.

Since sitting down, Jian Shi hadn’t said a single word related to work. She had been chatting about all sorts of things—her experiences and work stories. It was clearly a romantic date, making Lin Qiao almost want to check her phone to see if it was Valentine’s Day.

Feeling frustrated, Lin Qiao looked around in annoyance when she suddenly saw an unexpected person at the restaurant entrance.

Qin Muyao stood there, a dark blue blazer draped over his arm. He wore a white short-sleeved shirt neatly tucked into his Hermès belt. His black trousers were of excellent quality, hanging straight without a single wrinkle.

Sensing someone watching him, Qin Muyao casually glanced over. Behind his frameless glasses, his bright eyes narrowed slightly, then his gaze flicked to the person behind Lin Qiao. A look of understanding quickly appeared on his refined face.

Lin Qiao awkwardly covered half her face with her hand and lowered her head, staring blankly at her wine glass, hoping desperately that he wouldn’t come over.

But clearly, God hadn’t heard her wish. Soon, a pair of finely crafted Oxford shoes appeared beside her. She followed the straight legs upward and saw Qin Muyao looking down at her, his eyes filled with a hint of helplessness.

“May I sit here?”

He spoke softly, as if afraid of disturbing anyone. Lin Qiao knew he was trying not to be heard by Shen Qingzhou. She nodded uncomfortably.

Qin Muyao sat across from Lin Qiao, called the waiter to order his meal, then draped his jacket aside and spoke softly, “This restaurant belongs to a friend of mine. I came to check on him. I didn’t expect to run into you here.”

Lin Qiao exhaled, her expression clearly troubled. Qin Muyao noticed and shifted his gaze slightly toward Shen Qingzhou, hinting, “Did something happen between you two?”

Lin Qiao shook her head and whispered, “He’s discussing business with someone. I just followed him secretly. I was just… bored.”

Qin Muyao said lightly, “You’re not free, nor are you that bored. You just don’t feel secure, or perhaps, you don’t fully trust him. He hasn’t earned your complete trust.”

Lin Qiao stared at him blankly. She had heard his words, and although they couldn’t be taken as absolute truth, they made sense.

Between her and Shen Qingzhou, there was indeed a lack of trust. Otherwise, why would she be following him like a thief? She had always hated people like that, but now she had unknowingly become the kind of person she once despised.

Qin Muyao stopped there, and the two sat in silence for a while. When the waiter brought their meals, they picked up their cutlery and sat facing each other, both silent.

After a while, Qin Muyao sighed and said, “Eat. You’re not in the right state of mind to hear what they’re saying now.”

Lin Qiao snapped back to reality and realized she hadn’t heard any sound from behind her. She fought the urge to turn around and slowly cut into her steak, finding the taste bland.

“Not to your liking?” Qin Muyao noticed her slow and minimal eating and put down his cutlery. “Then let’s go to my place. I’ll cook for you.”

Lin Qiao thought for a moment and nodded. She could still leave in time, at least before Shen Qingzhou noticed she had followed him. She could pretend she hadn’t gone out at all, which might allow her to feel a little more at ease when she returned.

Sighing deeply, Lin Qiao called the waiter to settle the bill, but the waiter handed the receipt directly to Qin Muyao. Without hesitation, Qin Muyao signed his name and stood up to signal her to leave, doing everything so naturally, as if he had done it countless times before.

“Senior Qin, why did you…” Lin Qiao wanted to say something, but Qin Muyao raised his hand to stop her.

“Qiao Qiao, we’ve known each other for a long time. Maybe it’s time you changed how you address me.” He looked at her seriously, his tone sincere.

Lin Qiao stood awkwardly in front of him. She didn’t want to speak much, fearing Shen Qingzhou might overhear. But clearly, today wasn’t her lucky day. The two behind her had finished their meal and were now passing by to leave. Qin Muyao shifted his gaze from her to the person beside her. She had a very bad feeling and turned her head stiffly to look. Her face turned pale.

Shen Qingzhou and Jian Shi stood side by side, staring directly at her. The luxurious lighting of the restaurant illuminated Shen Qingzhou’s slightly puzzled face. His dark eyes slowly shifted from her, flickering with glimmers, as if stars were dancing within them.

At this moment, the restaurant was playing Faye Wong’s “No Trace.” The lyrics happened to reach, “I gave the candlelight to you, dinner to him; I gave the song request to you, the microphone to him; I gave my heart to you, my body to him; I’d rather leave nothing behind, no more attachments.”

Lin Qiao suddenly felt her body unsteady, her palms sweaty, unable to utter a single sound. Her first instinct was to leave, but a hand grabbed her. She turned around and saw it was Qin Muyao.

Qin Muyao calmly helped her out of the awkward situation, “Qiao Qiao, I’m sorry for choosing a restaurant that made you unhappy. Let me take you somewhere else.”

The implication was clear—she wasn’t here to follow Shen Qingzhou, but to meet him. What a perfect excuse.

Shen Qingzhou placed his hands behind his back, thoughtfully eyeing Qin Muyao. After a moment, he curled his lips into a smile, though it wasn’t a real smile.

His expression was half-smiling, half-mocking, carrying a subtle edge of danger and division, subtly portrayed with complex emotions.

How complicated his emotions were, deep and elusive. One thing was certain—he was very unhappy.

“Qingzhou, do you know each other?” Jian Shi hesitated, glancing between Shen Qingzhou and Qin Muyao, asking softly.

Lin Qiao’s face stiffened. In such a short time, she was already calling him “Qingzhou.” She hadn’t even used that name often. Now hearing another woman use it so intimately made Lin Qiao almost lose her composure.

“Let’s go,” Qin Muyao timely pulled her away, but after a few steps, he found he couldn’t move.

He turned around and saw Shen Qingzhou firmly holding Lin Qiao’s other wrist, staring coldly at him.

After a two-second stare-down, Shen Qingzhou emotionlessly pulled Lin Qiao into his arms, fixed his gaze on Qin Muyao, and clearly addressed Jian Shi, “I don’t know him. I know her.”

With the two “her” references, Jian Shi wasn’t stupid and naturally knew who was who.

She frowned at Lin Qiao, remained silent for a few seconds, and forced a strained smile, “So it’s this lady. Could she be the one you mentioned before—the one you haven’t won over yet?”

…You’re the lady, and your whole family is too. Lin Qiao mentally lashed out at everyone indiscriminately. Being held tightly by Shen Qingzhou and drawing stares from the diners around them, she silently vowed never to come to this restaurant again.

As if summoned by her thoughts, the restaurant owner appeared just then. He was looking for Qin Muyao. Seeing Qin Muyao in a hostile standoff with Shen Qingzhou, he accurately identified Lin Qiao as the culprit behind this “incident.”

“Did you not enjoy your meal?” the owner politely asked, “If the food wasn’t to your taste, we can waive the bill.”

The owner’s words were clearly directed at Shen Qingzhou, who ignored him and had no intention of wasting more time with Qin Muyao. He simply pulled Lin Qiao and started to leave, but Qin Muyao wasn’t going to let them go so easily.

As they passed by him, Qin Muyao’s deep voice cut through, “Qiao Qiao, if you still want to come to my place for dinner, I can take you away.” He looked at Lin Qiao, his eyes confident and resolute.

Lin Qiao instinctively turned to look at Shen Qingzhou. He was staring at her intensely, speaking in an unfamiliar, dangerous tone, “If you don’t leave with me now, there’s no need for us to meet again.”

Jian Shi looked at the scene in surprise. Ever since she met Shen Qingzhou, she had always thought of him as someone particularly free from desires.

In her mind, he was the epitome of being desireless and strong-willed. Yet his current behavior completely overturned her perception.

It wasn’t that he had fallen from his pedestal, but rather that the man who had always been as calm as a still lake had suddenly become assertive, making him even more attractive.

Lin Qiao knew that Shen Qingzhou was not to be trifled with at this moment, and she had no intention of troubling Qin Muyao further. What had happened at his place last time already made her feel guilty. She never wanted such a thing to happen again.

He liked her, yes, but she couldn’t keep making him her “backup” just because of that. That would be too disrespectful to him.

So Lin Qiao slowly opened her mouth, her tone sincere and apologetic, “Senior Qin, I’m really sorry for troubling you again and making you spend money. If there’s anything I can do for you in the future, feel free to ask. I’ll be leaving now. Goodbye.” She bit her lip, pulled her hand from Shen Qingzhou’s grasp, and left without looking back.

From the moment before, Shen Qingzhou hadn’t looked at Jian Shi again. Now seeing Lin Qiao leave, he immediately followed her, and soon the two disappeared from the restaurant entrance.

In the vast Western restaurant, only Qin Muyao and the others remained awkwardly standing, drawing various curious glances from the diners.

Qin Muyao slowly clenched the hand at his side, watching Lin Qiao’s unhesitating back with deep pain in his eyes.

Suddenly losing something he had thought was within easy reach was indeed a terrible punishment. He had always thought the phrase “a thousand arrows piercing the heart” was exaggerated, something that would never happen to him. But now he deeply felt exactly that.

Slowly lowering his head, looking at his tightly clenched fist, he thought to himself, this must be what “a thousand arrows piercing the heart” feels like.

After leaving the restaurant, Lin Qiao stood by the roadside trying to hail a taxi, but it was hard to find one at this time and on this street. With no other choice, to avoid Shen Qingzhou following her, Lin Qiao ran directly toward a nearby corner.

What a coincidence—Lin Qiao ran straight to where Shen Qingzhou had parked his car. The parking spot was hidden, behind a tree at the corner. The area beside it was a shop under renovation, not yet open, with few people around, making the car almost invisible.

As Lin Qiao passed by, Shen Qingzhou took a quick step forward and pulled her behind the car. The bustling lights and traffic outside were instantly shut out. Surrounded by a few green trees and the white luxury car blocking their figures, they were secluded from the outside world.

Lin Qiao looked at him in surprise and finally said, “Why are you following me?”

Shen Qingzhou gave her a sidelong glance, “Why did you run?”

Lin Qiao hesitated, then awkwardly replied, “Can I say I was scared? I didn’t say anything about you having dinner with a pretty girl, but you kept glaring at me like you wanted to eat me…”

Shen Qingzhou scoffed lightly, taking a step closer to her until she had nowhere to go and was pressed tightly against the back of the car.

He placed both arms on either side of the car, forcing Lin Qiao to half-recline onto the car. Leaning close to her ear, he said in a low voice, “Lin Qiao, if I didn’t know that you had followed me all the way here in a taxi and had nothing to do with Qin Muyao, I wouldn’t just be glaring at you now.” His whole body pressed against hers, his legs slipping between hers, sensually pinning her against the car. “Lin Qiao, do you know what real devouring feels like? Want me to show you right now?”

Lin Qiao was stunned. She looked around and immediately said, “Here? Let’s not.”

Shen Qingzhou slightly curled his lips, released her, and said, “Then let’s go somewhere else.” With that, he pulled her to the front passenger seat, smoothly got into the driver’s seat, backed the car out, and sped through the bustling night of Beijing toward his newly acquired residence.

Lin Qiao vaguely sensed something and hesitantly asked him, “Where are you taking me?”

Shen Qingzhou didn’t hide it, bluntly replying with two words, “My place.”

Lin Qiao felt a bit panicked. After hesitating for a while, she finally asked, “Shen Qingzhou, what exactly do you want to do?”

Shen Qingzhou glanced at her and pressed the accelerator, making the car go even faster.

He said straightforwardly, “Make love.”